The US secretary of commerce has approved a plan that would prohibit an expansion of commercial fishing in the Arctic, at least until more is known about the area. The goal is to come up with a sustainable fishing plan that will not harm the overall health of the fragile Arctic ecosystem.

Another step has been taken toward the creation of synthetic organisms with a new "engineered" strain of bacteria. A team successfully transferred the genome of one type of bacteria into a yeast cell, modified it, and then transplanted into another bacterium, an advance which overcomes the obstacle of making a new inserted genome work inside a recipient cell.

Australia and New Zealand have discussed a joint carbon market at talks in Sydney today. Plans for cap and trade schemes are in limbo in both countries as the two governments struggle to negotiate the required parliamentary support from their respective oppositions.